Self-help Group Provides Hope

To help others with Multiple Sclerosis cope with the uncertainty of when the disease will strike again and how severe the symptoms will be, Abrams and Mabel "Tootie" Weis are reorganizing an M.S. self- help group for others like themselves in the Easton area. The group, which will serve those in Northampton County and Warren County, N.J., will meet at 7:30 p.m. the second Friday of each month in the rehabilitation conference center of Easton Hospital. The center is accessible to the handicapped.

Friends and family members of M.S. victims are welcome as well. Weis' husband Raymond says, "One reason why I go is...so I can learn something about it (M.S.)."

"There are a lot things that we learn from getting together," Abrams says.

Weis, who was previously active in an Allentown chapter, explains M.S. victims will learn "how to go about being handicapped and still living." She adds, "Most people when they hear the word M.S., they freeze."

The group can also provide assistance in securing wheelchairs for those who need them and will arrange for speakers on such topics as physical therapy. Outings such as picnics are also planned.

M.S. is an incompletely understood and presently incurable disease of the central nervous system. It usually strikes young adults between the ages of 20 and 45 years. Victims may experience loss of control of one or more limbs, numbness and double vision or other eye problems. M.S. does not affect memory or intelligence.

The disease consists of periods when symptoms become more severe, known as exacerbations, and periods when victims show improvement, or periods of remission. Temporary treatment with ACTH, a substance normally produced by the pituitary gland to encourage steroid production in times of stress, may help but provides no real solution to coping with the disease.

Despite the disabling aspects of M.S., both Abrams and Weis speak matter of factly about their personal histories with M.S. and go on with living one day at a time.

"I've had it for 20 years and it started out where I didn't walk at all," says Weis. For three years, she was bedridden and numb from the waist down. Presently, she is experiencing a period of remission and is able to move about somewhat. She has arranged the furniture in her home so she can lean on it to move from room to room and is able to go short distances outside with the aid of a special cane. For longer trips, she must use a wheelchair.

His loving support of his wife is immediately obvious. Weis' sons, Mark, 23, and Tim, 27, too, have stood behind their mother. Twice, while she was away from home, they remodeled her kitchen and bathroom to make everything more accessible to her.

"My family has been very supportive," Weis is quick to point out.

Her husband asserts, "It's a family project."

To keep in shape and strengthen herself, Weis makes short excursions about the level terrain of the neighborhood on a three-wheeled bicycle. She recently received a stationary bicycle for use indoors when the weather is inclement.

She regularly attends her son's baseball games, with the help of her husband, and the couple has been to the Bahamas and is planning a vacation in Hawaii.

Weis' daily schedule is equally full. She gets up every day at 6:30 a.m. to make her son's lunch, then cares for several neighbor children till they catch the school bus. Afternoons, she watches two other children until their parents come home from work. Whenever she has a free moment, Weis is busily crocheting afghans, placemats and other items for family and friends.

Abrams is able to walk and drive. "I guess I'm probably one of the luckier ones," she says. Once, however, she was hospitalized with the disease and suffered numbness on her right side. While in the hospital, she received physical and occupational therapy. Later, she asked a doctor to help her put together an exercise program to do at home.

"It is beneficial. It really does help," Abrams says, "M.S. does do something to your muscle tone. I have difficulty with writing sometimes and lifting."

Weis agrees that for those who are still ambulatory to any degress "that little extra effort is very worthwhile."

Providing the encouragement for M.S. victims to make that little extra effort to enjoy life more fully is what the group is all about. Anyone wishingmore information may call Weis at (215) 252-2353.